BishopAccountability.org
	Former Bishop in Paedophile Scandal Admits Abusing Boys Yorkshire Post April 16, 2011 http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/international/former_bishop_in_paedophile_scandal_admits_abusing_boys_1_3294840 A former Belgian bishop at the centre of one of the Roman Catholic church's biggest paedophile scandals said he had abused two nephews but insisted he had no plans to abandon the priesthood. Roger Vangheluwe, 74, claimed he paid one nephew he abused for years tens of thousands of euros in support, but denied it was meant to keep him silent. He called 13 years of sexual abuse of one nephew, which started at five, as no more than "a little piece of intimacy" and said the abuse of a second nephew was very short. He said he fully realised what he did was wrong and often went to confession about it. Vangheluwe resigned a year ago, just as the sex abuse scandal was spreading across Europe. The acknowledgement of more abuse and his attempts to minimise its impact immediately caused an outcry. Justice minister Stefaan De Clercq said: "It is a slap in the face of his victims and all victims." Vangheluwe left Belgium last week under Vatican orders to seek treatment abroad and Belgian news media say he is now in a French monastery.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.